


We Got Married AU

by bbyminho



Category: SHINee
Genre: Fake Marriage, Fluff, Kinda, M/M, Musical Actor Kibum, Slow Burn, actor minho
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-03
Updated: 2016-11-21
Packaged: 2018-07-11 22:35:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 19,316
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7073263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bbyminho/pseuds/bbyminho
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Minho was hoping to get a friend out of the experience. With Kibum now in the picture, he kinda hopes he'll get something more.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Minho was very excited when he got the offer from We Got Married. As one of the only openly out males in the business, he was looking forward to being the start of a new era of WGM that represents all types of couples, including ones of the same gender. He was nervous about how it would be received but he was even more nervous to find out who his husband was going to be. Although more people were coming out due to acceptance becoming more widespread, there still weren’t many. He could probably count the number of possible men on one hand. 

Minho tried not to worry about it too much but on the first day of shooting he was very anxious. They were going to have their first meeting at Namsan Tower. Minho knew it was cheesy but he honestly loved visiting and it was one of his favorite places in Seoul. He loved the romantic air about the place. He could sit at the top of the tower for hours and be perfectly content staring at the city below.

He knew that he was going to arrive first so he didn’t have to worry about meeting his husband right away but during the elevator ride up, his heart was pounding. The awesome video shown on the ceiling surprisingly did nothing to distract him. When he got to the top, he was directed to go and sit on one of the stairs. However he couldn’t sit there for long and instead scooted over and gazed out the window instead. Filming was early, before the tower opened for the public, so he got to watch the sun rise over the city. Seeing the bright colors of the sky calmed him. 

The director decided that having him sit there would be better so that he couldn’t see his husband come in. As soon as Minho was about to start questioning why the mystery man was taking so long, the director told him that he was on his way up so he shouldn’t turn around. Oh god here we go, Minho thought slightly panicking. He had felt so peaceful sitting there that he almost forgot his was filming. His hands were starting to get sweaty, this was not good. He sat up straight and closed his eyes tightly, willing himself to calm down but to no avail. 

He could hear footsteps behind him and then felt a tap on the shoulder and a playful “Anyeong yeobo”. He turned around and looked up. His eyes widened when he saw the handsome, smiling man before him. He was blond and had piercing eyes. His lips looked very soft and pink and he had a scar on his eyebrow that fit his look oddly well. Minho couldn’t look away from the attractive face. He vaguely recognized him but he honestly couldn’t recall from where. 

The man bowed and said, “I’m Key. I’m a musical actor, it’s nice to meet you.” Was that flush of pink on his cheeks makeup or was he blushing? Minho now remembered his new husband seeing as he just recently came out as gay. Minho quickly came to his senses and stopped staring at the pretty face. He stood and bowed as well. He noticed that Key was at eye level, only about and inch shorter than him. He said with a shy smile, “My name is Choi Minho, I’m an actor as well but mostly on tv.” 

“Has anyone told you how pretty you are, Minho?” Kibum asked with a mischievous look in his eye. Minho could feel his ears turning red. He didn’t get pretty often. He got hot and sexy a lot due to the uncomfortable amount of shirtless scenes he had to do. He liked pretty better. “Thank you, you’re really handsome yourself.”

“It’s pretty early, do you wanna get some coffee and we can learn more about each other? Since we are married now,” Key said with a twinkle in his eye. Is he even nervous? Minho wondered. Key seemed to be perfectly at ease. He even insisted on talking casually from the start. They walked around the tower and then sat in front of a window and chatted. Minho was blown away by how easy Key was to talk to and how effortless it was to keep up conversation. 

“Wait, you’ve seriously never been here before?” Minho asked wide eyed. 

“I haven’t,” Kibum chuckled, “All my friends said it’s overrated so I just never came.”

Minho gasped, “Overrated? This is one of my favorite spots in Seoul! How have you lived here all your life and not visited?”

“Not everyone likes the romantic cheesiness of the place like you seem to,” Kibum laughed. “But I’m actually from Daegu, not Seoul.”

“Really?”

“Yep! But I moved here to pursue my acting,” Kibum explained.

“I actually love musicals,” Minho admitted, “I’d love to act in one but my voice isn’t super strong. What musical are you working in right not?”

“I’m playing Frank in Catch Me If You Can which is why my hair is blond,” Key explained. 

“It looks so good on you,” Minho said, “I’ve always wanted to go blond but I’ve never gotten the chance to. All of my roles have had dark hair.” 

Key scanned his face, making Minho feel flustered, and nodded, “I’d approve, it would look very refreshing on you.” 

Minho smiled shyly, “Thanks Key.” 

“Please, call me Kibum. Kim Kibum, it’s real name. Since we’re married now, I’d prefer if you called me that,” he admitted.

“Okay Kibum,” Minho got little butterflies when he said his name. It felt right. He was hoping to get a friend out of this experience. With Kibum in the picture, he now hoped he’d get something more.

They continued chatting, playing off each other nicely. Kibum was very amused by Minho’s high pitched laugh that greatly contrasted his deep voice and Minho loved how borderline obnoxious Kibum’s laugh, sometimes it was more like a cackle if he was going to be honest, was. Every time he laughed, he leaned towards Minho and grabbed his arm or his shoulder. Minho tried to keep him laughing with very bad jokes just for the little acts of skinship. 

Minho found out that Kibum has two poodles with ridiculous French names that he can’t remember, is surprisingly good at water skiing, and can handle alcohol very well. Minho shared his fanatic love of football, his embarrassing obsession of anime, and his secret hobby of writing songs. 

“Will you write me a love song, please!” Key pouted. 

Minho just rolled his eyes leaning towards the man, “I suppose, I couldn’t say no to that face.”

At that moment they got a mission card. “Write each other postcards that will be mailed and received a few months from now,” Kibum read outloud. They were handed postcards, both embarrassingly lovey dovey on the front, and went to one of the tall tables. Minho had an idea of what he wanted to say but it seemed so cheesy. Kibum was already writing at a fast pace. Minho tried to sneakily peak at what he was writing but was immediately smacked on the head with the postcard. “Don’t even think about it Choi Minho,” Kibum threatened walking to a different table and covering his postcard with his hand.

“Please, I wanna see what you’re writing!” Minho whined in his best aegyo. 

Kibum burst out laughing, “Oh my god your aegyo is too much. But no, you’ll get to see this later.”

Minho just sighed knowing he’d get nowhere with the man. He ended up writing the cheesiest note but he thought it was fitting and could see Kibum enjoying it. They dropped their letters in the little red mailbox together and with two big smiles the first show came to a close. 

It was close to 10am now, the time that the tower opened, so they had to get cleaned up and leave quickly. Minho was surprised, whenever he watched We Got Married, the first meetings were always awkward but he and Kibum hit it off naturally. The two chatted as they were released to go home for the day. Well Minho was going home before shooting began in the evening and Kibum was heading straight to the theatre. 

“Wait Minho, where are you going?” Kibum questioned as Minho walked towards the cable cars that would take them back down to the city. 

“Did you wanna walk down? That’ll take forever and you have to go to work. Plus the tower is about to open so people will be walking up and they want this to be a surprise so we can’t be seen in public together. Next time we will, I promise!” Minho said not noticing how Kibum’s face had paled. 

They got a cable car all to themselves and as soon as the doors closed and it started moving, Kibum crouched down with a curse, startling Minho. “Kibum, are you ok?” Minho asked with a worried look, crouching next to him. 

“This is my first time on one of these. Why is it moving around so much??” Key exclaimed, eyes squeezed shut and arms tight around his body.

Minho touched his shoulder, “Kibum it’s ok, I’m right here. I’ve been on these things a million times and nothing bad has ever happened.” He rubbed Kibum’s back, “Come on Kibum, look at me I’m right here.” Kibum hesitantly opened his eyes. “Good now let’s stand up,” Minho said as he loosened Kibum’s arms and took his hands. Kibum just kept staring at him. They stood up together but right as they did a gust of wind made the cable car sway. Instead of crouching down again Kibum latched onto Minho, burrowing his head in his chest and clinging onto him for dear life. Minho immediately held the shaking man, softly whispering comforting words. Kibum slowly calmed down a bit and loosened his grip on Minho. 

“Sorry, I guess I should’ve mentioned that I’m scared of these,” he said with a shaky laugh.

“It’s ok Kibum, don’t apologize. Anyways we’ll have to do a lot of skinship on the show so why not start now,” Minho chuckled, “How did you get up here if you didn’t take one of these?”

“I walked, that’s why I was late,” Kibum stated simply. 

Minho erupted in laughter, “Are you serious?!”

Kibum pulled back to look him in the face, “Hey, stop laughing at me!”

“I’m sorry, it’s just I was waiting for so long I can’t believe you walked up all the way up so early in the morning,” Minho explained.

“It’s not my fault, I can’t control my fear! I didn’t even know we were coming to Namsan until we arrived this morning!” Kibum declared indignantly.

“Whatever you say Kibum,” Minho giggled.

“Choi Minho I will get you back for this just you wait,” Kibum narrowed his eyes. Just then he saw that they were about to arrive and quickly let go of Minho so that the workers wouldn’t see them so close. Minho in return linked his arm just in case he was still scared. The taller liked the small smile placed on Kibum’s face and the faint blush on his cheeks, much nicer than the terrified man from a few minutes ago.

Once they got to the bottom safely, Kibum walked Minho to his car. “Thanks for helping me out back there, Minho. I’m sorry, I’m a bit mortified,” Kibum blurted. 

“Kibum, really it’s fine. Don’t worry about it,” Minho chuckled. He thought it was cute how embarrassed Kibum was about the whole situation. Little did he know that Minho would react similarly if they ever went into a cavern. He had a very traumatizing experience in New Mexico as a child.

Once they reached Minho’s car, Kibum said, “Hey, I’m honestly really excited about this. I was super nervous about who I’d get but I suppose you don’t seem too bad.”

Minho wondered if the playful light in Kibum’s eyes ever went out. “Thank you,” he replied with a laugh, “You seem alright as well.” 

They stood there smiling sweetly at each other for a beat too long until Kibum broke the silence, “I should probably get going. I don’t want to be late. I’ll see you soon.” 

“Wait, can I get your number?” Minho asked and then stuttered, “I mean just since we’ll be working together and everything.”

Kibum smiled widely, “Of course.” Minho stood there shifting his weight as Kibum entered his number. “Okay, here you go!,” He said handing Minho the phone, “And I called myself so I’ll have your number too.”

“Awesome. Well it was nice meeting you Kibum, seriously.”

“Bye Minho,” Kibum waved, walking away.

Minho got into his car and immediately put his face in his hands and giggled. He couldn’t believe his luck to get such a handsome fake husband. He checked his phone and saw that Kibum put his number in under the name yeobo. He could see this show going very well.


	2. Chapter 2

Minho was extremely excited to see Kibum a week later for their next filming. He hadn’t been able to get the other out of his head. For this episode, he would be going to Kibum’s apartment. He was slightly nervous but seeing how well they played off each other last week he was just looking forward to seeing the attractive man again. He had even prepared by looking up his dogs’ names, Kibum posted so many pictures of his dog on instagram so they were easy to find, and had perfected the difficult French words. 

Minho knocked on the door and waited patiently, holding the bag of groceries the pd told him to bring. Kibum opened the door with a wide smile, “You’re here!” Minho froze.

“Your hair! It’s hot pink!” Minho sputtered after a few moments of silence.

“Great observation Choi Minho, you are correct my hair is hot pink,” Kibum said dryly.

Minho unconsciously reached out and touched his hair in wonder, “But it’s still so soft.”

Kibum looked at him with amusement, “Excuse me, there are two dogs behind me that would much rather be pet.”

Minho recoiled immediately getting pink in the face, “Sorry, that was weird. I don’t know why I did that.”

“It’s okay,” Kibum reassured with a wink, “I know I’m irresistible.” 

“Whatever,” Minho mumbled awkwardly and crouched down to pet the two very wiggly pups who were even cuter in person. He looked up at Kibum who had a fond smile on his face, “You look really nice.” Kibum was wearing a white sweater and black skinny jeans. Minho had no idea how he looked so attractive in such simple clothing.

“Thank you! I assume that bag is for me,” Kibum said backing up and shooing the dogs inside so Minho could come in. He slipped his shoes off at the entrance and gave Kibum the groceries, “Yes, I’m guessing we’re cooking together tonight.”

Just then, the pd handed them a red envelope stating their mission to cook a meal together.

“You are obviously correct,” Kibum stated leading Minho into his kitchen. Minho noticed how nice his apartment was, even if it was a little cramped due to the cameras and crew members present. 

“What are we going to make?” Minho questioned while unpacking his groceries, “I know you’re a good cook so I’m excited regardless.”

“We are making salmon tonight,” Kibum responded, flitting around the kitchen grabbing his own ingredients from the cupboards and fridge.

Minho paused and looked up at him, “Of course we’re making salmon, I bought the salmon. What else are we making?”

“You asked,” Kibum shot back playfully, “And just roasted vegetables. Nothing fancy.”

Minho groaned, “That still sounds so good, I’m sooo hungry.”

Kibum looked over his shoulder while he was taking out cooking utensils, “Something tells me you’re always hungry.” 

Minho slumped over the counter sighing dramatically, “You are correct.” Kibum patted his back and placed a cutting board and a knife in front of him, “Now get to work, the sooner you chop, the sooner we eat.”

Minho got to work while Kibum made the sauce. They chatted away and once again played off each other nicely giving the editors lots of footage of Minho saying bad puns and Kibum rolling his eyes. The audience would eat it up. 

“So, why pink?” Minho asks genuinely curious.

“Well my last musical just ended,” Kibum began to explain.

“Wait really?” Minho interrupted with a pout, “I wanted to see it!”

Kibum giggled at the face, “It’s okay, you can come see the next one.”

Minho sighed looking defeated, “Alright.”

“But anyways, I thought, might as well dye my hair a crazy color while it’s bleached. I’ll probably have to dye it back dark for my next musical so why not! I thought pink would look good on me so here we are.” 

Minho smiled, “You definitely made the right choice.” He moved to pull a carrot out of the grocery bag to chop.

Kibum glanced over to check on how the veggies were coming along. “Wait, is that a carrot?!” he exclaimed.

“Yeah, why?” Minho asked confused at his disgusted tone.

“Ugh, carrots are gross why did you buy them?” he whined.

Minho chuckled at his reaction, “Because I was told to buy veggies so here they are. They’re good for you Kibum.”

He wrinkled his nose, “Okay but you’re eating all of them.”

While the salmon was cooking, they took a break from filming. They both sat next to each other on the couch getting their makeup retouched. 

Once the makeup artists finished Minho blurted, “It’s really strange.”

“What is?” Kibum tilted his head.

“Greeting you in front of cameras. Getting to know about you and developing this friendship in front of cameras. It’s not bad or anything, it can just feel a little impersonal sometimes. And I really do like you as a person.” He all of a sudden looked self conscious, “Sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything. I don’t know, it’s weird.”

Kibum patted his arm comfortingly, “No it’s not Minho, I actually feel the same way.”

“Really?” Minho asked with big eyes.

Kibum nodded, “How about this, do you wanna stay over a little while tonight if we don’t finish filming too late. There’s a bubble tea place just down the street we can go to. We can talk some more and get to know each other in a more private setting.”

Minho’s smile lit up his face, “Yeah okay, I’d like that a lot.”

~

After filming a “romantic” dinner with very scripted cheesy lines and doing the dishes together, which ended with two soaking sweaters, filming was finally over. The two men changed into dry sweatshirts and helped the crew packed up. Once everyone left, they both looked very relieved. “Even though it’s my job, being in front of the camera can be so exhausting sometimes, especially for variety shows,” Minho vented.

“I understand,” Kibum sympathized, “When you act you’re a character but with this you have to control your own self which can be tiring. I curse so much on a daily basis it’s horrible and it’s so difficult to watch my mouth when I’m filming these shows!”

“Really? I rarely curse,” Minho confessed.

Kibum rolled his eyes, “Of course you don’t, you’re perfect angel Choi Minho! I am not surprised at all.”

Minho childishly stuck his tongue out in response.

“You ready for bubble tea?” Kibum asked.

“Absolutely!” Minho responded.

They put on jackets, Minho borrowing one of Kibum’s to put over the sweatshirt he had also borrowed since it had gotten colder after the sun set. Minho silently reveled in being surrounded by Kibum’s addicting scent. He walked happily next to the older down the street to the little shop. After they got their orders, they sat down in a corner table. Luckily the store was basically empty due to the late hour so they weren’t noticed.

They started off with more small talk similarly to the last time they chatted but then they moved onto more serious topics. First talking about how they came to terms with their sexuality and their families’ reactions, both mostly positive thank goodness. Minho took control of the conversation then and talked about his insecurities from being overshadowed by his older brother. The hurt he got when his dad banned him from joining the soccer team due to his lack of skill and watching his brother attend Seoul University while he struggled to pass his classes. It felt really nice to talk about it with someone other than his group of childhood friends. He was surprised how comfortable he felt telling Kibum about this personal information that he rarely shared.

Once he was finished, Kibum began to start talking about basically being raised by his grandmother and quickly began to tear up.

Minho reached across the table and covered the older’s hand with his, “It’s okay Kibum, you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

“I do want to tell you about my life,” Kibum explained quickly, “but do you mind if we go back to my apartment and just chill there, I’m not feeling up to talking about my tragic backstory, you know?”

“Of course, Kibum.”

They recycled their empty cups and left the store. As soon as they stepped outside, Kibum reached out and laced his fingers with Minho. The younger tried to hide his surprise but couldn’t help the warm smile that he shot Kibum. The walk home was comfortably silent. He decided that he liked the fact that he and Kibum held hands for the first time naturally, even though it was platonic. He knew it could be hard to maintain a genuine friendship when WGM was usually so scripted. 

Once they got back to Kibum’s apartment, he went to the kitchen to make some tea while Minho picked out a movie. He settled on a British rom-com since he found out today that they both shared a love of London. They wrapped up in blankets and settled into the comfy couch, the dogs following close behind. They sat right next to each other and by the end of the movie, Kibum was leaning heavily into Minho and they each had a snoozing pooch in their laps. 

“I should head back,” Minho sighed, reluctant to leave.

“Yeah,” Kibum agreed, “It’s getting pretty late.”

Minho looked over and gave the man a pout, “But I’ll wake up the dog.”

“Don’t look at me like that, he’ll be fine,” Kibum giggled, “Plus I’ll be seeing you in a week for our next filming.”

“I know,” he gently shifted Commes Des over and rose from the couch. Kibum followed him as he shuffled to the entrance and put his shoes on.

“I’m so glad we got to spend time together today,” Minho looked up from tying his laces and smiled. 

“I know me too,” Kibum leaned against the wall. “You feel more like a friend and less like coworker now.”

“Exactly how I feel,” he stood up. “I’ll see you in a week, okay.”

“Can’t wait,” Kibum said. Before Minho could open the door, he wrapped his arms around the other. “Thanks for telling me about everything, it must’ve been hard to open up.”

Minho was still from surprise for a moment and then hugged the man back, “I wanted to Kibum, thanks for listening.”

They let go of each other and stood there grinning shyly. 

“Bye Kibum,” Minho finally opened the door and walked out.

“Bye Minho, text me when you get home safely,” Kibum waved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hopefully i'll have the next chapter up in a week! i'm struggling a bit with it but i finally got somewhere yesterday so i think things are back on track. also make sure your friends always text when they get home safely! be a good friend like kibum


	3. Chapter 3

“Morning Ming,” Minho heard in his ear as he jolted awake after dozing while getting his makeup done. He heard a raucous laugh and saw Kibum in the mirror. He was bent over from laughing so hard, “Oh my gosh you should’ve seen your face. You looked so funny.”

Minho pouted looking at the mirror to see the other man, “You’re so mean to me.”

Kibum straightened up, “I’m sorry, I couldn’t help myself.” He didn’t look sorry at all though. In fact, he was still giggling. Minho just stuck his tongue out as Kibum took the seat next to him and a makeup artist started working on him. Minho took the quiet time between them to admire Kibum’s bare face before it was covered up. He hadn’t seen anyone have such clear skin before. His sleepy eyes travelled up to see Kibum’s pink hair that was verging on pastel pink.

“Your hair looks pretty,” he said. 

Kibum’s face lit up in a smile. “Thank you, it’s fading to such a nice color. It’ll be gone soon though. I was cast in a new musical. I have some time but I’ll be going back to black by the end of the month.”

“Oh really, what musical?” Minho asked.

“Bonnie and Clyde,” Kibum answered. He looked like he had more to see but was interrupted by a makeup artist.

“Boys, it is impossible to do your makeup. Save the flirting for the camera please.”

They looked guiltily at each other and Minho closed his eyes to doze some more.

He was shaken awake by the coordi noona and was instructed to put on a pair of very tight black jeans and a sweater that engulfed him.

He was led to outside to a wooded area. Kibum came out shortly after him and they were led in front of a bush with blooming flowers. The concept for this shoot was to just look attractive without smiling. Minho struggled a bit because of the freezing autumn air, he had no idea how Kibum was so natural at this. 

They were taking a break when Minho started shivering. Kibum noticed quickly, “Are you cold?”

Minho shook his head, trying to play it off but he couldn’t stop his shaking. Kibum took his coat off draping it over his shoulders. “Just in case,” he smiled, putting his arm around him.  
“Thanks,” Minho said shyly. 

“Okay boys, we’re done out here. We’ll start the shoot inside so go change,” the pd instructed them.

~

They stood together in front of a mirror and burst out laughing. They were both clad in skinny jeans and matching couple sweaters. “We look so ridiculous,” Kibum exclaimed, leaning into him. 

“But you have to admit, we pull it off pretty well,” Minho giggled.

Kibum winked, “We do make a very cute and cheesy couple.” He grabbed Minho’s hand and they walked to set together, the pd giving them a thumbs up behind the camera for the unprompted skinship.

This set was much simpler, it was a basic white wall backdrop. “Okay, for this one we’ll take a few serious shots but most of it will be pretty cutesy. We’ll start out with you two just looking at each other.”

Kibum automatically threw an arm around Minho’s neck and pulled him close. Minho was glad for the thick layer of makeup or else his blushing would’ve been obvious. He looked up into Kibum’s eyes but immediately started giggling from embarrassment at being so close to the other man. This led to Kibum cracking into chuckles as well. It took them a few tries but they were finally able to calm down to get the romantic shots. The closer Kibum got to his face, the more butterflies erupted in his stomach. “Okay, now hold hands,” the photographer directed. Minho tried to slyly wipe his sweaty hands on his pants but obviously Kibum noticed by the smile he was trying to hide. Minho smiled in embarrassment. 

He was relieved once the serious shots were taken and they could go back to being their joking selves. They were moved to sit on the floor and were given bubbles to play with. Kibum had too much fun blowing the bubbles straight into his face. As Kibum leaned back in laughter Minho took the chance to lean in and kiss his cheek. Kibum did a dramatic gasp and held his cheek. Minho knew he was playing it up for the camera but he couldn’t stop the giant smile from forming on his face seeing Kibum’s reaction. He didn’t really mean to do it, he just couldn’t resist at the sight of Kibum so open and happy. They were having so much fun Minho was almost disappointed to hear they had gotten enough shots.

~

The last shoot of the day was for their wedding. They were both clad in suits, Minho’s navy and Kibum’s white. Minho never thought that anyone could pull off a white suit until Kibum stepped out, practically glowing. Minho hoped he didn’t notice the goofy smile on his face. 

They were led outside where they would shoot in front of a classic brick wall. It was similar to the last shoot where it was just them being cute and natural together. Minho’s favorite one was Kibum on his tiptoes making him taller than Minho. Kibum favored the one of him returning the favor and planting a kiss on Minho’s cheek. But they both agreed the funniest one was Kibum squishing Minho’s chubby cheeks with his palms, head tipped back in laughter.

“You busy after this?” Kibum asked him while they were walking back to their dressing rooms. 

Minho shook his head, “I’m having dinner with my hyung tonight but that’s it.”

“Would you mind if we helping me with something? I just got my script for Bonnie and Clyde and I need someone to run lines with me.”

“Yeah of course! I live closer than you so is it okay if we go to my place?” Minho said.

“Sure!”

~

The entrance of Minho’s apartment was cluttered with shoes, including a few pairs of athletic shoes coated in mud with dirty socks sticking out of them. He kicked them aside, “Sorry, it’s a little messy around here. I wasn’t expecting guests.” They took their shoes off and hung up their bags.

Minho’s place was cozy. The living room was almost completely taken over with a large fluffy brown couch with lots of blankets and pillow thrown on it, some spilling onto the floor. There were photos and little personal trinkets everywhere. Kibum picked one picture frame up with what appears to be an old family photo of his. A baby faced Minho had his arms wrapped tightly around his older brother while his parents smiled next to them. “Awww, you were the cutest kid!” Kibum exclaimed. Minho turned around and saw what he was holding. 

He shrugged with a smile, “I won’t deny it, I was adorable.” 

Kibum giggled, “You have so many pictures displayed, I wanna hear the story behind all of them.”

“Well the one you’re holding was taken one day when we went to see one of my dad’s soccer games. I’m afraid that’s the only backstory you’ll get today because we are here to run lines.” Kibum pouted but put down the photoframe. “Do you want something to drink?” Minho asked as he turned into the kitchen.

“I’ll take some tea,” Kibum replied as he followed him. He noticed immediately that even Minho’s fridge was covered. It seemed as though he had saved every piece of fan art he’d ever received and placed it straight onto the shiny surface. There were also fan letters and more personal photos sprinkled in there too. The magnets were a mixture of souvenirs, ones with cheesy quotes, and a large collection that were cutely shaped like animals. Kibum chuckled to himself at how adorable and sentimental the other man was. He truly cared about everyone in his life. He couldn’t help but hope that one day he’d make the fridge. He started scanning all of the items.

“How did you find today?” Minho asked.

“Pretty easy,” Kibum replied without looking up.

“I hate photoshoots,” Minho admitted.

This made Kibum turn, “Really?”

Minho nodded while pouring the tea, “Yeah I feel like I’m so awkward in front of the camera like that, it feels so unnatural. Especially when they’re trying to make me seem like this masculine guy that never smiles. It’s always so forced and it’s obvious to me when you see the photos.”

“Ah, I understand. You aren’t the most masculine of guys but that’s one of the things I like about you the most. You’re soft, comfortable, giggly, you make it easy for me to be myself,” Kibum rubbed Minho’s arm comfortingly while looking sincerely at him. Minho felt himself flush at the compliment. Too often his company wanted him to be this manly guy and it was reassuring to hear that it’s okay not be. Kibum continued, “But at least this one wasn’t all serious photos. It was nice doing the fun ones with you. I enjoyed myself.” 

“I did too Kibum,” Minho smiled. “Now enough distractions. We need to get reading.”

“Do we have to?” Kibum whined.

“You need to learn your lines Kibum,” Minho nagged, “If we’re gonna hang out it has to be productive so you can be ready for rehearsals.”

“Okay, mom,” Kibum said sarcastically.

“We’ll take a break after act one and get a late lunch, does that sound good?” Minho asked, knowing it was exactly what Kibum wanted to hear.

“Sounds wonderful,” Kibum said grinning. “I’ll go get the scripts and we’ll start.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this one is a little all over the place. i struggles so much with the photoshoot scene so it's not very well written :(( but i love the scene at minho's house! i think it shows a lot about his character ^^ also all the chapter updates will be pretty short. i'm still sorta new at writing so i'm not good at writing large amounts yet.


	4. Chapter 4

Minho and Kibum had been keeping in touch since the last filming, texting every day with the occasional phonecall. Kibum brought up a charity concert he was performing in and Minho thought it would be a fun idea to surprise him there. He set up everything with the pd and he was currently sitting anticipating the other man’s performance. He had made sure to text him good luck and was pretty sure Kibum had no idea that he’s actually be attending. He sat in the back of the theater where there was no chance that Kibum would be able to spot him even with the camera crew. 

Kibum was one of the last performers to go onstage. He looked absolutely stunning singing onstage. His hair had faded to a soft pastel pink and the spotlight on him made him look ethereal. His voice was beautiful and smooth sending a wave of comfort over Minho. He had never heard the man sing live before and was in awe. The ballad fit Kibum’s voice well and he stole the show. It was absolutely breathtaking in Minho’s eyes. He was falling faster and faster each time he saw the man. Kibum also was onstage for the last song where all the artists sang together and Minho was happy to see him interact cutely with his friends and colleagues. He jumped around the stage taking selfies and waving to fans. Minho giggled at his antics. He could go from professional singer to total goofball at the drop of a hat. When they were taking their final bow Minho left with the crew to sneak into his dressing room. It wasn’t a single dressing room, he was sharing with his two friends, Jinki and Taemin. Minho just prayed that Kibum would come in first. 

He stood nervously in the middle of the room with the bouquet of flowers that he had bought for the occasion when he started hearing voices down the hall and a laugh that could only be Kibum’s. Minho started getting nervous, feeling silly standing in the middle of the room with flowers. The door opened and two men, neither of which were Kibum walked in. Once they spotted Minho, they got confused looks on their faces but Minho put his fingers to his lips and they nodded in understanding closing the door before they spoke. “You’re Minho, right?” asked the man on the left with pretty caramel hair. 

Minho nodded, the man on the right with black hair parted in the middle started snickering before being elbowed by the other man. Minho felt intimidated meeting Kibum’s friends without him present. He had heard their names in passing but didn’t really know much about them. “Where’s Kibum? I thought I heard him laughing outside.”

“He’s taking more pictures with some of the other performers,” the caramel haired one answered.

All of a sudden the door opens and there is Kibum in all of his beauty. He stopped mid step and stared at Minho. “Surprise?” Minho smiled shyly, looking nervous.

Kibum broke out into a huge smile, ran over to Minho, and promptly started hitting him. “You jerk, you said you couldn’t come tonight!”

“I know, I’m sorry!” Minho said trying to avoid Kibum’s attacks. “I wanted to surprise you, I brought flowers and everything,” he whined shoving the flowers in Kibum’s face.

Kibum grabbed the flowers and threw his arms around Minho, hugging him tightly. “Thank you so much!” He said, pulling back and looking at the man with the grin still on his face. Minho’s stomach flipped at the sight.

“Good surprise?” Minho asked.

Kibum nodded, “Great surprise!”

They suddenly heard someone clear their throat behind them.

Kibum turned around, “Oh!”

Taemin has a raised brow, “Yeah, we’re still here.”

Kibum looked flustered briefly at the idea that his friends saw this slightly cheesy (though genuine) exchange. He thoughtlessly laced his free hand with Minho’s and dragged him over to where his friends were standing on the other side of the room. 

“Minho, these are my friends, Jinki and Taemin. Boys, this is Minho, my husband.”

Minho still wasn’t used to being called Kibum’s husband and he felt a burst of happiness at how easily it fell out of his mouth. 

“Nice to officially meet you guys,” he shook their hands. 

“I’m glad to meet the guy Kibum keeps blabbing about,” Taemin smirked.

Kibum flapped a hand at him. “Shut up oh my god,” he said, blush creeping up his neck. 

“What? It’s true!” Jinki insisted. 

“Did you know Minho tried to make me eat carrots? This is the kind of tea Minho made me! I want to be on Minho’s fridge one day.” Taemin imitated. 

“Blah blah blah it’s nonstop,” Jinki rolled his eyes, yet he was still smiling.

Kibum was just standing there in shock so Minho squeezed his hand in comfort. “I’m flattered, really,” he grinned and it slowly turned into a giggle. “You really wanna be on my fridge so badly?”

“No,” Kibum lied.

“That’s too bad, I just put up your press release for Bonnie and Clyde. I guess I’ll have to take it down now,” Minho teased.

“You did?” Kibum looked at him hopefully.

Minho nodded with a proud smile.

“They’re so in love it’s kinda gross,” Taemin stage whispered.

Jinki giggled, “Don’t be mad cause you’re jealous.”

“Yeah Taemin, it’s not our fault we’re so cute,” he leaned over and kissed Minho’s cheek for emphasis. Minho’s ears heated at the contact, he wondered how Kibum was bold enought to do that in front of his friends. Taemin just stuck his tongue out in reply which caused them all to chuckle.

“Okay well we’re gonna get out of here and leave you two lovebirds alone,” Jinki said. 

Taemin hugged Kibum saying, “I hope you know we expect to be invited to the wedding.” 

“There would be no way I could get married without you two there,” he said once they parted. He and Jinki hugged as well and they exchanged handshakes once more with Minho.

Once they left Minho and Kibum were given a challenge. Whoever lost the game of rock paper scissors had to let the winner paint their nails. Minho lost and Kibum went to work. They decided on a glittery blue color that would be hell to get off later but looked pretty enough that it was worth it. 

“So,” Kibum started while uncapping the bottle, “What did you think of my friends?”

“They both seem really great,” Minho said. Kibum started painting his nails and he couldn’t help but notice how cute he looked. He was sticking his tongue out in concentration and was surprisingly neat, his nails looked perfect.

“Taemin is something else but he’s the youngest so we let him get away with it,” Kibum said.

“He was funny, I’d really like to get to know them better,” Minho said sincerely.

Kibum looked up at him, “I hope that’ll happen.”

Minho smiled, “I’m sure it will.” He was confident that even when the show ended, they’d stay part of each other’s lives.

“And what did you think of the performance?” Kibum asked.

“You were amazing up there,” he gushd. “Really, your voice is gorgeous and you glowed up on stage. It was like you were an angel,” he blushed immediately afterwards at how cheesy he sounded.

Kibum looked up again, “Really? I was so terrified up there. My hands were shaking so badly, I’m glad it didn’t show.”

He twisted the cap back onto the nail polish and lifted Minho’s hands to blow on them to dry them faster. “You had nothing to be scared about, you sounded perfect.” 

They were interrupted by a red envelope presented by the pd. Kibum opened it, since Minho’s nails still weren’t dry. It informed them that next week they’ll be moving into their house together. The predicted what kind of house they got. 

“It’d be nice if we got one we could put our own personal touch on, you know?” Kibum said.   
Minho could see the wheels turning in his head, he already had ideas on what he wanted. “You’re the artistic one, I’ll leave that up to you!” 

Once filming ended, they headed to the parking lot together. “I’m really sorry we can’t hang out tonight, I know it’s kinda become customary for us to spend time together after filming,” Minho said.

“You have to be up at 4am tomorrow for filming, you don’t have to apologize for anything,” Kibum insisted. 

“But still, I feel bad. I want to hang out with you,” he said and then hesitated for a moment. “Maybe we could meet up sometime before next week if you’re free.”

Kibum smiled, “I’d like that a lot. Maybe we could get lunch on Friday or something.”

“Sounds good,” Minho sounded relieved that he agreed. 

When they reached his car he pulled the other man into another hug. “I’m so glad I got to see you tonight. You truly are so talented, Kibum,” Minho said softly.

Kibum pulled back and took Minho’s hands in his, “And thank you for coming. I was kinda disappointed when you told me you couldn’t come. It meant a lot to me that you would plan this for me. And you brought me flowers, it was really sweet of you.” He nodded towards the bouquet currently placed on top of his car. 

“I wouldn’t have missed it,” Minho smiled.

Kibum leaned forward and kissed his cheek, “Goodnight Minho.”

“Night Kibum,” he turned and scurried away. Once he got into his car he tried to calm the blush creeping up again. He hadn’t had it this bad for someone in a long time. He felt like he was back in high school with the way he was reacting to the smallest of skinship. Kim Kibum was going to be the death of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so sorry it's been a while since i updated! i spent some time working on some other fics for a challenge hosted by subminhonet (which y'all should totally check out ^^) i will try to update again once school starts and i'll try as hard as i can to update throughout the semester but i have really tough classes so i hope y'all can be patient


	5. Chapter 5

Minho walked into the cafe they were meant to start the show at. He spotted Kibum immediately because of the cameras hovering around him. He might’ve missed him if it hadn’t been for that since he was looking for someone with light pink hair and Kibum’s was now black. He looked up from his drink and the sound of the door and his face lit up in a smile. Minho had to take a moment to compose himself. Kibum looked quite attractive with his blond and pink hair but his black hair is something else entirely. If Minho was going to be honest, he looked really hot. He had to stop himself from blushing while just looking at the other man. It brought out the sharp lines of his face even more and Minho was breathless.

Once he got used to the new look, he walked to the table and sat in the chair across from Kibum. Before he could greet Minho blurted out, “Your hair looks really good!”

Kibum chuckled, “Thank you Ming, you are always quite fascinated with my hair.”

Minho’s stomach fluttered at the nickname, “Sorry, it just always looks so good.”

“Don’t be sorry, I’m flattered,” he said with a wink. He was so suave and it made Minho’s heart beat too fast for his own liking. “When I arrived, they gave me the address of our new place, do you wanna head over?”

“Yeah, of course!” Minho said, jumping out of his seat. He was very excited to see where he and Kibum will be filming often. He was hoping it was somewhere comfortable and cozy. Kibum joined him and connected their hands. “Lead the way then,” he smiled. Kibum started off knowing exactly where he was going. It must be nearby which would be nice. They were close to parks and lots of cafes and it wasn’t too crowded. They attracted a few people while filming but it wasn’t an alarming amount. They focused on each other and their banter. Kibum was going on about rehearsal when a small apartment building came into view. 

“Is this us?” Minho asked. 

Kibum pulled the envelope out of his pocket and checked the address again. “Yep! It seems as though our apartment is at the top floor so let’s head up.” Two flights of stairs later and they were standing in front of their door. Kibum pressed the code into the keypad and it beeped. “Welcome home yeobo,” he said opening the door and motioning for Minho to enter first. 

Minho giggled with excitement. From what he could see from the doorway, the apartment was nice but comfortable. 

They walked in and took off their shoes. The stepped into the open space. There was a cozy living area in front of them with a plush couch and pictures and trinkets on the tables on either side of it. Minho immediately drifted over to see them closer. There were framed pictures of Commes Des and Garcon, a few pictures of Minho and Kibum with their personal friends, and different selfies and pictures from the show of the two of them. There was a paperweight with a soccer ball print, a pillow in the shape of bubble tea, various scripts of shows they had done, wine bottles with fairy lights in them, candles, writing pads and pens, lots of little things scattered over the tables and shelves. Yet it didn’t look overcrowded at all, the whole thing flowed together. To their left there was a large print of their photoshoot together, both of them midlaugh in their tuxedos. A door was to the left that surely led to their bedroom. There was also an area for the pups in the corner with a bed and lots of toys.

“This is beautiful,” Minho said in wonder, “How in the world did they make this look so nice? It’s so personal too.”

He turned to explore the rest of the apartment. The dining room had a square wooden table with 4 chairs surrounding it. 

Their kitchen looked well stocked for cooking with an island for more counter space. The fridge was decorated with magnets, which seemed to be from London, and promotional pictures of them from the show plus a few more personal ones, mostly of them doing their hobbies. There were candid shots of Minho playing soccer or writing and more of Kibum with his dogs. They really were like his children. “This is so cute,” he smiled.

“Do you wanna go see our room now?” Kibum asked him. 

Minho blushed at the thought of them sharing a room and bed. “Of course,” he replied, hoping the camera didn’t pick up his pink cheeks.

Kibum opened the door for him once again and he stepped into the room. It was relatively simple. There was a queen sized bed in the corner of the room with a white comforter and lots of cute colorful throw pillows. The bedside table had more pictures and some books. There was a chest of drawers against the wall with a tv and dvd player on top. Another framed print of their photo shoot together, this one was of them looking longingly at each other while standing close together with their couple sweaters on, was hung on the wall along with fairy lights hung around the room. Minho peaked his head into the bathroom and spotted a basic walk in shower and a pair of toothbrushes waiting to be used. “This is really nice,” Minho turned around to face Kibum. “It fits us really well I’m surprised.” He wandered over to look at the photos on the table. 

He was so busy exploring their new place so he didn’t realized the Kibum wasn’t doing the same. He had stayed in the doorway, observing Minho’s reactions the entire time. “Actually, there’s a reason for that,” he explained. “I really wanted to make this place special for you and me so they let me decorate the place.”

Minho turned around with wide eyes, “Are you serious? You did all this for us?”

Kibum bit his lip nervously and nodded, “Do you like it?”

“Oh Kibum, I love it,” relief colored his face. Minho walked over and enveloped him in a hug. He pulled back a beat before Kibum could return it. “Thank you so much for doing this, it’s amazing.”

Kibum blushed at the complements. “There’s actually one more surprise. Close your eyes,” Kibum said. He did as directed and he felt Kibum’s hand slip into his. He pulled him out of the room and Minho could hear him open the front door. They went out into the hallway and walked a few steps before he heard another door open. “Okay Minho, we’re gonna walk up some stairs now,” Kibum warned. He helped Minho figure out where the stairs started and made sure he kept count and knew when they stopped. Kibum opened another door and Minho felt a cold breeze hit him. Kibum took his other hand and led him out. He spoke softly, “You can open your eyes now.” 

When Minho did the first thing he saw was Kibum right in front of him softly illuminated. He had a small smile on his face that filled Minho up with affection. He forgot for a moment that he was supposed to be observing his new surroundings instead of staring at Kibum. He slowly dropped his hands and looked around. They were on the roof of the building. There were more fairy lights strung up which was causing a lovely glow about the place. There was a little garden in a corner and lots of cushions scattered on the floor. There was a tent with sleeping bags rolled up inside and a picnic table. “Oh Kibum, it’s beautiful,” Minho said, looking at the man.

“I’m so glad you like it,” Kibum said. He held out his hand, “Now do you wanna order in takeout and eat in our new home? I know you’re freezing out here.”

Minho pouted, he thought he had been hiding his shivers well. “Okay, that sounds good,” he took the outstretched hand and they walked back to their apartment together. 

~

After they finished eating, they heard a knock on the door. They stopped their conversation and looked at each other, confused. “Is this another surprise?” Minho asked.

Kibum shook his head, “I have no idea who that could be. Maybe it’s another mission or something.” They walked over together and Minho opened the door to reveal two men. 

“What the heck?” Minho exclaimed, shocked. 

The taller of the two smiled and held up a bag, “We brought drinks!” They pushed through the doorway, took off their shoes, and made themselves at home in the living room, sitting on the floor. Minho stood frozen watching the scene unfold.

“Goodness, Choi Minho,” the shorted one chided, “Aren’t you going to introduce us to your husband?” That snapped Minho out of his stupor.

“Oh right, Kibum, these are my friends Jonghyun and Joonmyun,” He still looked very puzzled at what was happening. Both men went up and shook his hand. 

“Nice to meet you, but why are you here?” Kibum asked.

“We’re here to throw you a housewarming party!” Jonghyun exclaimed.

“Well it’s not exactly a party if it’s just the four of us,” Joonmyun said.

“Oh hush you, this is of course a party,” Jonghyun insisted.

Minho and Key just looked at each other, still surprised by the sudden intrusion. “Well, I guess we have to join them,” Kibum shrugged. 

“I am so sorry for anything they say in advanced,” Minho said seriously.

Kibum chuckled, “Don’t worry about it, it’s a friend’s job to embarrass them in front of their husband.” They join them on the floor. 

While Joonmyun is handing out beers, Jonghyun is observing the decor. He gasped, “There’s a picture of Minho and I here! There’s one with you too Joonmyun!” 

“Really?” Joonmyun scurried over to look. “Aww this is so cute.”

“Kibum decorated it all,” Minho bragged proudly. 

The other man lightly hit him, “It’s really not that impressive.”

“No, you did a great job!” Joonmyun insisted. The two sat back down but not after poking fun at the couple pictures that were scattered around the place.

Kibum opened his beer and was about to take a sip when Jonghyun stopped him. “You can’t drink yet! You have to do a couple shot with your husband.”

“We have to do a what?” Minho asked.

“A couple shot!” Joonmyun exclaimed. He and Jonghyun linked their arms and drank from their glasses. “See! We did one and we’re not even married so now you have to do it.”

“You guys please, that’s so cheesy,” Minho rolled his eyes. 

The two ignored him and began chanting, “Couple shot! Couple shot!”

“Ugh fine,” Minho said, opening his beer. He looked over and Kibum who seemed very amused at the other two’s antics. He held out his arm and Minho linked it with his. Their faces got a little closer than they needed to be and once they finished they both burst into embarrassed giggles. They heard the other two cheering. “Oh be quiet,” Minho leaned over and smacked Jonghyun’s shoulders.

“What? You guys are just so adorable,” he winked. Minho replied by sticking out his tongue.

“So having a house party isn’t the only reason that we’re here,” Joonmyun began. “We are also here to test how much you know each other!”

Kibum gulped down his mouthful of beer and coughed a bit, “Are you serious?” 

Jonghyun nodded, “And the loser will be punished.”

 

Kibum looked panic, “But Minho is so much better at remembering these things than I am!” Minho giggled because he knew he would most likely win this. It wasn’t his fault he was a good listener.

“Nope sorry, this is what we’re doing! The loser has to make an ugly face when we take a selca together and upload it!” Jonghyun smirked.

“Fine,” Kibum said, not happy. Minho patted his arm in comfort.

“Okay, we’ll start with you Kibum!” Jonghyun explained. 

“Got it,” Kibum replied.

“What show was Minho filming when you two met?” Joonmyun asked.

“Because It’s the First Time!” Kibum answered immediately. He remembered talking about during their first filming. 

“Correct!” He let out a breath of relief even though he knew he was correct.

“Minho, what musical was Kibum part of when you two met?” Jonghyun asked.

“Catch Me If You Can,” Minho stated. “He played a character named Frank,” he added on.

“Correct!” Minho smiled.

“Kibum, what is Minho’s hyung’s name?” Joonmyun asked.

Kibum blanked for a second, “Ummmm.” After a few seconds he blurted out, “Minseok!” 

“Correct!” 

“Minho, what university did Kibum attend?”

Now it was Minho’s turn to falter for a moment, Kibum had only mentioned the name once. “I think it was Myongji University.”

“You are,” Jonghyun paused for dramatic effect, “correct!” Minho smiled in relief. 

“Okay, these are the last pair of questions. If you both get them right, we’ll have a tiebreaker,” Joonmyun explained. The two nodded in understanding. “Kibum, what is Minho’s hometown?”

“Seoul,” he answered immediately.

“Uh oh, you are wrong!” Joonmyun exclaimed, giggling.

“What?!” Kibum turned his head to look at Minho who was pouting. “You’re not from Seoul?!”

“I’m from Incheon, you knew that,” Minho nudged his arm. 

“Crap, I did know that. I’m so sorry,” Kibum frowned.

“I suppose I’ll forgive you this time,” Minho winked and chuckled at Kibum’s apologetic face.

“Moving on,” Jonghyun interrupted, “Minho, what is Kibum’s hometown.”

“Daegu,” Minho smiled in victory.

“Wrong, he’s from Busan!” Jonghyun said.

Minho furrowed his brows, “No he’s not.”

“Yeah you’re right, I was joking. Congratulations, you win!” The three of them cheered while Kibum mumbled grumpily to himself.

“Okay Kibum, get your ugliest face ready!” Joonmyun said gleefully. 

“I really do not want to do this,” Kibum complained like a child. 

“Too bad,” Jonghyun sing songed.

They crowded in and Kibum contorted his face as ugly as he could while they took the selca. They all ended up in fits of laughter afterwards.

Once things calmed down a bit Minho leaned over and whispered, “If it makes you feel any better, I even think your ugly face is cute.” Kibum bit his lip in embarrassment to the cheesy line but also at how it did make him feel better.

They sat there and exchanged more conversation and jokes with each other. Soon enough, the episode wrapped after Minho’s friends left.

“You came with your manager, right?” Kibum inquired.

“I did, I came straight from filming,” Minho explained.

“Well then I’ll take you home, we didn’t get much time to ourselves,” Kibum insisted.

Minho smiled at the offer, “That’d be great.” He went over and cleared it with his manager.

They helped the staff pack up and left into the cold night air. Kibum was parked two blocks away so they began walking in that direction. Kibum stopped in his tracks. “Oh, I forgot my sunglasses in there! Will you come back with me?” he asked.

“Of course,” Minho replied.

They made the short walk back to the apartment and while Kibum was searching around the bedroom, Minho laid down on their bed. “Ah, here they are!” he exclaimed, holding up his glasses in success. He turned off the lamp, leaving only the fairy lights on. “Ready to go?”

Minho looked over and patted the bed, “Come lay with me.” Kibum looked beautiful with the soft lighting. He gave a small smile and joined Minho. The other man reached out and threaded their fingers together. They laid there in comfortable silence for a while just staring at the ceiling. It was nice, peaceful. Something they both needed after a hectic day. Minho finally spoke up, “We’re going to make a lot of great memories here, Kibum.”

“I know we will,” Kibum squeezed his hand.

“Thank you again for doing all this,” Minho looked over and Kibum was already gazing at him. “No one’s ever treated me as nicely as you have. I know it’s just for the show but still, I’m grateful.”

“It’s not just for the show, Minho,” Kibum said softly. “I’d still want to do all of this for you, you’re a beautiful person.” Minho was glad the darkness hid his blush. He had such a strong urge to close the gap between them but he didn’t have the courage. He was pretty sure Kibum liked him too, but it would be difficult to pursue something with their careers and he was scared. There was still a tiny voice in the back of his mind telling him it’s all in his head. “We should probably get going,” Minho began.

Kibum shook his head, “Let’s just lay here for a little while longer.”

“Okay,” Minho breathed out. Kibum let go of his hand and wrapped an arm around his shoulder, bringing him closer. Minho curled into him, pillowing his head on Kibum’s shoulder and laying a hand on his chest. He felt the other man softly press his lips into his hair and butterflies erupted in his chest. In that moment, he couldn’t have been happier.

Okay maybe if they had kissed he’d be happier but for now this will do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a bit of a longer chapter! updates might be a little shorted because i'm starting school on monday and it's gonna be a busy semester!! i also admin a minho blog so i'll be busy w/ that during the comeback. thanks for sticking with me!


	6. Chapter 6

Kibum was an incredible actor. For today’s filming he was visiting Kibum at his rehearsal for Bonnie and Clyde. The other man barely had time to scamper over for a hug before rushing back to rehearse. Minho sat in the corner, watching him in amazement. His character was arrogant and greedy and not very like Kibum at all. Regardless, he was able to portray Clyde perfectly. He was so in character and it was very believable. It was incredible to see him in his workplace. Minho knew how passionate Kibum was about his career so he loved to see him in action. The acoustics in the room were excellent so his powerful voice engulfed Minho in warmth. He could watch the man for hours and never get bored.

Once Kibum’s rehearsal finished up he collapsed next to Minho, breathing heavily. Sweat clung to him yet he was still glowing. He didn’t even smell bad, how was this possible? “So, what’d you think?” he asked once he caught his breath. He looked over and had a huge smile on his face. Minho could tell that this was what he truly loved.

“You’re so talented Kibum. You portray the character so well,” Minho gushed. “I have a lot to learn from you, I’m really impressed.”

“Oh be quiet, you’re great too,” Kibum bumped his shoulder. “Now let me introduce you to some of the cast.” They flew around the room and Minho met many interesting characters. Everyone had a sharp sense of humor and they spent most of the time embarrassing Kibum.

After they met people they all slowly trickled out of the room until there was only one person left. Kibum led Minho over to where she was packing up her bag. She looked up when she heard them approach. “And this is my Bonnie,” Kibum said throwing an arm around her.

She shook hands with Minho, “It’s so nice to meet you, I’m Dana.” The women smiled and shook Minho’s hand.

“Minho, but you probably already knew that,” he replied, smiling back.

“Oh, I know you. I’ve heard lots about you for my lovely costar here. He’s been talking nonstop the past week about you visiting. He was threatening everyone to not embarrass him but it looked like that didn’t work very well, did it Kibum?” she smirked at him and he stuck his tongue out.

“It’s okay, it was funny,” Minho insisted. “And I just wanted to let you know that you’re the perfect Bonnie! You have a beautiful voice, Kibum’s lucky to be able to work with you.”

“Aw thank you, you’re so sweet.” She reached up and stage whispered, “You know Kibum’s manners are horrible, hopefully you’ll rub off on him soon.”

Minho giggled, “I hope so too.”

Kibum rolled his eyes and looked at her with his arms crossed, “Oh be quiet, like you’re any better.”

“You might have a point there,” she admitted. “Now I will be off, I hope to see you again Minho,” she waved.

“I’m sure you will,” Minho said.

She stopped in the doorway and turned around. “By the way, your husband is a very good kisser,” she winked and walked out of the room.

Minho burst out laughing as Kibum’s face turned red. “I’m so sorry, I should’ve told you! The musical is a little… sexy,” he cringed as the word.

“Don’t apologize,” Minho finally got control of his giggles. “I’m familiar with the show, I looked it up when I heard you were cast. I understand, it’s all for work. You don’t have to worry about it.” He softly took Kibum’s hand in his and smiled.

Kibum relaxed instantly, “Oh thank goodness, I was irrationally anxious.” He squeezed Minho’s hand, “I’m going to go shower really quickly.”

“Sounds good,” Minho said. Kibum let go of his hand and walked out of the room. They had already made plans to grab dinner together afterwards. They also had to have a quick meeting about the next episode, which would be the wedding. Minho was sitting, playing on his phone waiting for the other man when he saw one of the staff members setting up two chairs facing each other. He was confused for a second but figured they were just setting up for the next rehearsal. However, he heard her call out his name, “Can you come over and sit here for a second.”

He was confused but he complied, “Sure.” He set his phone down on a table and sat in one of the chairs. Less than a minute later, Kibum came back into the room with a ukelele in hand. “What are you doing?” Minho asked as he sat down in front of him.

“Shhh,” he reprimanded, “I’m going to serenade you.” Minho looked at him with big eyes as he started plucking a few strings before beginning the song.

_I start thinkin’ bout my Minho_   
_From the moment I wake up_

“Oh my gosh,” Minho groaned hiding his face. He recognized the song pretty quickly as he had listened to the soundtrack before coming. Kibum was changing the name in the song “Bonnie” to Minho. He was too much and Minho shouldn’t be enjoying it as much as he was. He uncovered his face and watched Kibum. He was smiling and his eyes were sparkling as he sang to Minho, maintaining eye contact.

_And that feelin' is the best I ever had_   
_He is in my shavin' mirror_   
_He is in my coffe cup_   
_I must be in love or else I'm goin' mad_

_I would like to write to Minho_   
_Tell the boy the way I feel_   
_But I'm better with a car than with a pen_   
_Used to be I'm only happy when I'm set behind a wheel_   
_Now I don't care if I ever drive again_

_That boy's got somethin'_   
_Nothing scares him_   
_Only piece of luck that's ever come my way_   
_Can't wait to tell him_   
_How much I've missed him_   
_Feelin' sorry for James Cagney_   
_'Cause he's never kissed him_

_I start dreamin' 'bout my Minho_   
_Just as soon as I'm asleep_   
_They're the kind of dreams that keep you in your bed_   
_I am makin' love to Minho_

Minho blushed profusely at this line and looked away for a beat.

_And that sure beats countin' sheep_   
_Got a feelin' there are good times up ahead_

Minho clapped and Kibum leaned in a kissed him on the cheek. Minho playfully pushed him away, “That was the cheesiest thing you’ve done yet.”

“I know, but don’t deny that you loved it,” Kibum chuckled. He looked so handsome like this, his hair was still slightly damp and he was in a white shirt and jeans. Minho was swooning just looking at him.

The serenade marked the official end of the episode. While the rest of the staff packed up, the pd and the writers dragged chairs over and they quickly went over the plans for the wedding. It wasn’t the first time they had heard most of it. They were allowed to have a bit of a say in the event and could choose the friends that would attend.

“And there is just one thing we added,” the pd began. “We want you guys to kiss. Just a quick peck, nothing too much. The viewers love your natural skinship so we thought this would be a good time to take it up a notch.”

Kibum and Minho looked at each other unsure but this wasn’t usually something they could argue, the script stayed untouched by them (not that they always followed it or used it). They knew it would happen eventually so they accepted it. They walked out together in silence and got in Kibum’s car.

“Are you okay with it?” Kibum asked after sitting in the car for a while, an almost awkward air between them. “I don’t want you to do anything you’re not comfortable.”

Minho wasn’t surprised that Kibum was worried about him, he had surely turned paler since he entered the car. He wasn’t uncomfortable with it, he was just nervous at the thought of having to kiss Kibum in front of everyone. “I’m fine with it,” Minho answered. “It’s no big deal, just fan service.”

“Right, just fan service,” Kibum replied in a small voice. He started driving in silence. The tense air was obvious so Minho meekly reached out and turned the radio on. The song playing happened to be one of their favorites so they both looked at eachother and immediately started singing and laughing, the awkwardness peeling away.

They parked at Minho’s apartment and walked hand in hand down the block to the restaurant with the aunt who loved to spoil him. It was her first time meeting Kibum and she was delighted with how charming he was. It was little things like this that Minho loved about the other man. He was kind to everyone and wanted to impress everyone in Minho’s life. They left the restaurant with filled with food and happiness. On the way back Minho convinced Kibum to stay a little while and watch his nerdy sport anime (Slam Dunk is not nerdy, it’s a classic!).

They had just finished their fourth episode. Minho was snuggled with his head in Kibum’s lap and wrapped up in a blanket since he was always cold. Kibum had been running his hands through his hair and he was perfectly content. He looked up at Kibum, “One more?”

He checked his phone for the time, it was much later than he thought. “I’m sorry Ming, I should probably head home, I didn’t realize the time.”

Minho pouted, “Okay.” He walked with Kibum to the door. “You know the next time we see each other will be the day of our wedding, isn’t that weird?”

“Yeah, thinking about it is a bit strange I guess,” Kibum admitted. He held his arms open and Minho easily went into the embrace.

He tucked his head into Kibum’s neck, “Text me when you get home, okay?”

He felt the other man nod. He held on for a few moments longer than normal before letting go. However, Kibum just moved his hands down his arms to link their fingers together. Minho looked at him in question. Kibum just leaned a little closer and he glanced at his lips before meeting his eyes again. Minho clammed up when he understood the silent question. Kibum was asking to kiss him. He gave a little nod of his head and Kibum closed the gap.

The kiss was soft and gentle. It only lasted for a second or two but it was enough to make Minho’s heart pound. This was what he wanted from the very beginning and now it was happening. He was filled with warmth and butterflies. He couldn’t believe he was kissing this beautiful man. They parted and he leaned in for a quick second kiss and then they pressed their foreheads together. Kibum’s eyes were still closed but Minho was taking the time to memorize the lines of his face. He was simply stunning. He looked perfectly calm but Minho could feel the sweat on both of their hands. At least he wasn’t the only one nervous about this.

Kibum broke the silence and whispered, “I just really didn’t want our first kiss to be in front of a camera.”

Minho swallows and nods in understanding. Instead of replying with something cute or intelligent he just blurted out the first thing that popped into his head, “I’m sorry my lips are so chapped.”

Thank made Kibum chuckled, he finally opened his eyes and leaned back. He brought his hand up and cradled the side of Minho’s face, rubbing his thumb against his cheek. “Oh Minho, that was the last thing on my mind.”

“Thank you Kibum,” Minho said, tightening his hold on their fingers.

“For what?” he asked.

“For doing this, for being an amazing fake husband, for being a supportive friend, for just existing. Thank you,” Minho wrapped him up in another hug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so a thing finally happened in this slow burning fic! lots of fun things up ahead so i'm excited!! i managed to write this before school started but yesterday was my first day so now is when i'll start taking a while, i'm sorry! this is a crazy semester though and school comes first (i'm literally such a nerd i'm determined to make all As again)


	7. Chapter 7

Today was the day. All the coordi noonas and hyungs were bustling around him, preparing for the wedding. It was a little overwhelming and he wished Kibum were here but they wouldn’t see each other until filming started. He wished that it could be just the two of them but of course they had to invite friends so it was going to be a very loud occasion. He reached into his pocket to pull out the vow he wrote a few more times just to make sure he had committed it to memory. A staff approached him, “Okay, we’re ready to start filming.”

Minho nodded and followed her out of the makeshift dressing room. They went down the hallway and stopped in front of a doorway. The cameras started rolling and the doors were opened. The venue was a fancy restaurant right next to the Han River. All of the walls except for the one behind him were made of glass so there was a beautiful view surrounding them. However Minho wasn’t looking at that, instead his eyes were on the man standing in front of him. Kibum was there looking stunning in a tux mirroring Minho’s, black with a white shirt and black bowtie. Minho walked up to him but before he could compliment him the other opened his mouth. “You know what I realized earlier?” Kibum asked, a twinkle in his eyes.

“What?” Minho replied, confused.

He got down on one knee, “I never asked you to marry me.” Minho laughed loudly. “Don’t laugh Ming, this is a very serious moment,” Kibum said, his grin contradicting his words.

“I’m sorry, I just figured it was implied,” Minho said, amused at the situation.

Kibum pouted, “Minho I am trying to be romantic. Look at me I’m down on one knee and everything.”

Minho tried composed himself as best he could, “Okay okay, please continue.”

Kibum took his hand, “Minho you are the best husband I’ll ever have. Will you please marry me?”

“It would be an honor,” he replied dramatically.

“Thank goodness, it would’ve been so awkward if you had said no,” Kibum stood up and brushed the fluff that had collected on his bended knee.

“Wait,” he looked up to see Minho looking puzzled, “Aren’t you supposed to give a ring?”

Kibum blushed, “Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. We only have one pair of rings and those are being used for the wedding.”

Minho chuckled, he leaned over and pecked the other’s cheek. “Thank you, that was really cute.”

The moment was interrupted when they heard voices gradually increasing in volume and both groaned. The guests have arrived. “Here we go,” Kibum sighed.

Jonghyun and Joonmyun entered first. “Did you miss me?” Jonghyun exclaimed as soon as he walked into the room.

“Oh yes, I cried every day we were apart,” Minho replied sarcastically.

“Be careful there, Kibum might get jealous,” Joonmyun joked.

“It’s okay,” Kibum said replied, “I was there to wipe away his tears.” He looked over and winked at the taller man as his friends took a seat.

The next ones to arrive were Taemin and Jinki. Taemin put a hand on Kibum’s shoulder and looked at the other man seriously, “Hyung, we always knew you’d be the first of us to get married.”

Kibum pushed his hand away, “And very happily so.”

Minho and Jinki laughed together from the side watching the two bicker back and forth until the oldest figured it was enough and pulled Taemin away to sit with Joonmyun and Jonghyun.

Two girls appeared next. “Oppa,” the taller one called, rushing over and shoving Minho’s shoulder.

“Why did it take so long for you to introduce us to your husband?” Her pouty face quickly turned into a laugh, “I’ve missed you.”

Minho pulled her into a quick hug, “I’m sorry I’ve been so busy, I’ve missed you too Jinri. Same goes to you Amber.” He stepped forward to hug the girl standing behind Jinri. “This is Kibum,” Minho introduced.

“Nice to meet you,” Kibum said. Jinri hugged him and Amber fist bumped him. When they moved to sit down Minho explained to Kibum that he had acted with Jinri before and he met Amber at a variety show. The two of them basically became younger sisters he didn’t ask for.

The final two guests were Kibum’s friends Kunpimook and Sunyoung. “Hyung!!!,” Kunpimook called as he ran over and tackled him in a hug. “I can’t believe you’re getting married, you’re so old.”

Kibum playfully hit his shoulder, “I’m not old shut up! Minho, this disrespectful kid is Kunpimook.”

“Nice to meet you!” He then leaned over and stage-whispered, “You’re right he is old.”

“Be quiet I’m only a few months older than you,” Kibum chastised before turned his attention to Sunyoung.

She threw an arm around him, “Look at you oppa, you finally found yourself a husband.”

“Surprising, isn’t it? I’m so happy you could come Sunyoung,” he hugged her. He introduced her to Minho and he got a hug as well.

After that there was a break while the staff quickly set up for the “wedding.” The couple was pulled over to the side to run over the event one last time. While waiting at there to start filming Kibum explained how he knew the last two. “Sunyoung and I did a musical together and you know how I met Kunpimook.” Minho nodded. They had met at some event and Kibum quickly took the boy under his wing after learning he was also gay. He was very important to Kibum and Minho was happy he finally got to meet the excitable kid.

“It’s nice to see our worlds colliding,” Kibum mused as they watched their friends interacting. Amber was giggling at something that Sunyoung had said while Jinri was animatedly telling a story that had Jonghyun and Kunpimook and stitches. The other three were having a seemingly calm conversation.

“They’re all getting along well,” Minho observed. “And we both know they’re just going to get louder as the day progresses. This is tame compared to usual.”

“Oh god the staff is going to be exhausted by the end of this,” the two laughed at the thought.

Once the setup was done they started filming. All of the guests did their official introductions and talked about how they met whoever invited them. Taemin and Jonghyun made sure to share some embarrassing stories as well much to the amusement of everyone in attendance. After they had finished the couple took their place in front of everyone to say their vows.

They faced each other, Kibum reaching over and intertwining both of their hands together. “Choi Minho,” he began, lightly squeezing the other man’s hands. “I am happy to be standing with you today. We’ve become very close and I’m so grateful for you. Your kindness astounds me and everyone who knows you is lucky to have you in their lives. For someone who is always freezing, you carry a warmth within you that touches my heart. Every touch, every smile, every laugh fills me with joy. I hope you stay by my side for a long time.”

Minho knew they had something special but hearing Kibum’s words took him by surprise. He was a little overwhelmed with it all. It took quite a bit of self-control not to rush forward to hug the man. He also had to take a moment to blink away forming tears. It went unnoticed by their audience but he knew Kibum could tell by the way he squeezed his hands again.

He took a deep breath, “Kim Kibum.” The other man’s grin grew at the sound of his name. “I don’t think I’ve ever met someone like you before. Every time you step into a room you fill it with light. I am constantly in awe of you and your accomplishments. You have taken such good care of me and are the most thoughtful person I know. When we’re together I hate saying goodbye because I want to be with you always. I hope that there will always be a place for me in your heart because you will always be in mine.”

Now it was Kibum’s turn to hide his misty eyes. Minho rubbed his thumbs across the back of his hands in comfort. Kibum then looked next to them and paused in confusion, “Wait, where are the rings?”

“Oops,” they heard. Kunpimook jumped out of his seat and rushed to the front. “Sorry, you both were just so cute and I forgot I had to bring these up,” he apologized. He reached into his leather jacket and pulled out two simple silver bands. Minho took one and slipped it onto Kibum’s finger. He looked at it for a moment, thumb grazing over it.  

Kibum took the remaining ring and slid it onto Minho’s finger. He brought the hand to his lips and softly kissed it. He looked up and saw Minho beaming at him.

Kunpimook put his hands on their shoulders, “Congratulations, you’re married!” All of their friends stood up and cheered as the couple lifted up their joined hands and laughed together.

There was another break after that to change the set up again. Kibum immediately pulled Minho out the door yelling something about needing his bag over his shoulder to the staff. He dragged Minho out the door and down the hallway into the room he got ready in, ignoring the other man’s questions. He closed the door behind them. He turned around and pulled Minho close so he could wrap his arms around him. Minho responded immediately, rubbing his back gently.  “Sorry,” Kibum whispered in his ear, “I just really wanted to hug you but didn’t want anyone to see.”

“It’s okay,” Minho replied, “I like hugging you. You’re always warm.”

Kibum giggled and pulled back. Minho brought his hand up and fixed Kibum’s hair that had gotten out of place. “You know, I’ll stay by your side for as long as you want me too,” Minho said quietly, not looking him in the eyes.

Kibum smiled softly, “And you’ll always have a place in my heart.”

Minho pulled him into another hug, “You do realize we actually are the most disgustingly cheesy fake husbands, right?”

Kibum nodded, “Yeah I kind of hate us.” They both cracked up laughing and clutched to each other even harder. They were so loud that they missed the knock on the door.

“Sorry,” they heard. They jumped apart in shock to see it was just Kibum’s makeup artist, “You’re wanted back on set. Kibum I’ll just fix your makeup here.” Minho rushed out of the room, seemingly very embarrassed. Kibum just glared at her.

“No need to be fussy, you’re lucky it was just me,” Soojung said, powdering his face. “Next time you should lock the door.”

He scowled, “There’s nothing going on between us. We were just joking around.”

“Don’t worry your secret’s safe with me,” she winked.

“There is no secret,” he crossed his arms.

She rolled her eyes, “Whatever. You better get back out there or the pd will be upset.”

“Fine,” he said, knowing she was right. He went back and immediately scanned for the tall man. He found him chatting with Jinri and Jinki.

Minho turned immediately when he heard footsteps. He smiled at the sight of Kibum, “Oh good you’re back. We’re about to start filming.”

Their “reception” was going to be a mini dance party that the guests were supposed to open with a dance off. However, as soon as they started filming their friends starting chanting for a couple dance.

“I guess we have no say in this matter,” Kibum rolled his eyes but still had a smile on his face.

An awful stereotypical first dance song began to play. Kibum placed a hand on the small of his back and took his hand with the other. He put his unoccupied hand on Kibum’s shoulder. They started to slowly sway around the dance floor. They quickly fell into quiet giggles. They could hear their friends’ catcalls behind them. “Oh my god this is so embarrassing,” Kibum groaned.

“They’re all just staring at us our friends are actually the worst,” Minho said. His statement was punctuated by Jinki wolf whistling at them. Kibum stuck his tongue out at the older man over Minho’s shoulder.

Minho squeezed his shoulder, “Just ignore them. Though it’s hard to do with all the ruckus they’re making.”

“You’re right,” Kibum sighed, “Let’s not encourage them.”

“You think they could’ve at least chosen a good song for us,” Minho chuckled. Kibum laughed, leaning his forehead briefly on Minho’s shoulder. His eyes lit up at Kibum’s reaction. Instead of standing up straight, Kibum turned his head to lean his cheek on his shoulder instead. He tightened his hold on Minho.

Minho brought his hand up to rest at the nape of his neck and combed through the hair there,

“You okay?” Kibum just hummed happily in response. Minho pressed a quick kiss into his hair. Immediately he heard a chorus of awws behind them with someone who sounded suspiciously like Taemin yelling, “Gross!” Kibum looked over just in time to see Taemin and Jonghyun highfiving.

Minho groaned, “I was hoping they wouldn’t notice.”

Kibum looked up at him with a bright smile, “How did you think they would miss something like that?”

Minho shrugged, “Wishful thinking.” An easy silence fell between them. They didn’t look away from each other, using the time to take in the moment. After spending so much time together this felt natural and comfortable. The felt a happiness even when they just looked at each other. There was trust in their eyes and a happy serenity that couldn’t be matched.

The song was winding down when Minho whispered, “I love you yeobo.”

Kibum tried, unsuccessfully, to swallow the smile that was taking over his face, “I know. I love you too, Ming.” Minho beamed back.

The song came to a close with a round of applause from their guests. They quickly scurried off the dance floor as the others took over. Minho and Kibum got to sit back and enjoy the rest of the time. The dance battle was simultaneously amazing and hilarious. Taemin, Kunpimook, and Sunyoung left everyone in awe of their moves while Joonmyun and Jinri made everyone crack up with their bad dance moves. It ended up with Jonghyun dragging the couple back and everyone dancing as badly as possible. Amber was clinging onto Sunyoung, crying from laughter. It was honestly the best part of the day. However, it quickly came to an end and the guests were rushed out.

Minho pouted, “They left too fast.”

Kibum nodded in agreement, “I thought we’d get more downtime together.” He heard Soojung call his name. He placed a hand on Minho’s shoulder, “Be right back.”

As soon as he left, there as rush to put everything into place for the next segment. By the time Kibum came back in, Minho was sitting on the bench of the piano tucked into a corner of the room. His hands were sweaty.

Kibum walked over and sat in the chair facing him. “What are you doing?” he asked, a wide smile on his face.

“It’s my turn to serenade you.” Minho said, blush coloring his cheeks. Kibum’s heard him sing before but never like this. It was also the first time he’ll be singing on tv.

“I wrote this song about you. I’ve practiced it a lot because I wanted to make it perfect for you.” He took one last breath, trying to shake the nerves away, and began to sing.

_I’ve never said this before_

_To tell you the truth,_

_I felt my heart beating on that day_

 

_Since the beginning, I knew_

_I wasn’t sure but it felt like our fate_

_Was already decided_

His voice sang out pure and sweet but he kept his head down, not looking at Kibum. He knew if he saw the man’s face he would probably falter.

_Love is coming to me_

_It leads me towards you_

_It feels like a dream that I’ll never wake up from_

_It really seems_

_Like a dream_

 

_I remember the day we first me_

_You came to me_

_On a dazzling and bright day_

_Thank you for coming to me_

 

_Since the beginning, I knew_

_I wasn’t sure but it felt like our fate_

_Was already decided_

 

_Love is coming to me_

_It leads me toward you_

_It feels like a dream that I’ll never wake up from_

_It really seems_

_Like a dream_

 

_You are smiling at me_

_On this beautiful day_

_But why are tears forming_

_In my eyes?_

 

_I hope this is a dream that I’ll never wake up from_

_I hope things will never change_

 

_I hope the place where love lingers_

_Can be somewhere we can be together_

_It feels like a dream that I’ll never wake up from_

_It really seems_

_Like a dream_

 

_I remember the day we first me_

_You came to me on a dazzling and bright day_

_Thank you so much_

_For coming to me_

The last note rang out. He finally looked up shyly, anxious to see Kibum’s reaction. He was surprised at what he saw. Kibum was sitting there, a few tears dripping down his face. He rushed over to pull Kibum up. “What’s wrong?” Minho asked, cupping his face and wiping away the tears.

“Sorry, I’m not crying crying. I’ve just never had someone write a song for me. That was beautiful Minho. Thank you,” Kibum said sincerely

“I’m glad you liked it,” Minho said. He was so glad Kibum enjoyed his song.

“I have a present to give to you in return,” Kibum said.

Minho knew that this was the moment, “Really?”

“Yes, close your eyes.” He closed his eyes and waited. He felt Kibum’s lips barely touch his and retreat quickly. It was nothing like the one they had shared before, it could barely be called a peck, let alone a kiss. Minho knew this was all for show so he played up his reaction and followed the script to a tee. He was sad though. He knew it was unlikely for them to share a kiss like they had last time. Something filled with so much warmth and trust. He only had one or two rushed pecks like this left, he didn’t think he’d ever get to really kiss Kibum again.

During the next break Minho was sitting, zoning out. He felt kind of unsettled and he didn’t really know why. Maybe it was a kind of sadness made worse by sleepiness. He felt someone sit next to him. “Well that kiss was kind of awful, wasn’t it?” he looked over and saw Kibum smiling sadly. Minho just shrugged in reply, he didn’t really want to dwell on it. He knew he was holding back. He blamed it on his tiredness. Kibum wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him close. That action was all it took for Minho to bury his head into his neck and wrap both arms around his middle. Kibum rested his other hand on Minho’s arm, his thumb moving in comfort. “Are you okay Ming?” Kibum asked softly.

“Feel kinda weird, mostly tired,” Minho mumbled.

“Me too,” Kibum agreed. “But do you want to know something?”

“Hmmm?” Minho hummed.

Kibum spoke into his hair, “I’m so glad I got to kiss you for real first.”

He felt Minho smile into his neck and tightened his hold around him. They were in their own little world. The staff knew they were close but this time was different. Lots of curious looks were thrown their way that they were oblivious to. It wasn’t until they were interrupted to be told that it was time to film the ending so they needed to get their makeup retouched. They reluctantly untangled and separated to find their makeup artists. Kibum found Soojung quickly and she fixed his foundation. “There’s nothing going on between us,” she mimicked.

“Shut up,” Kibum muttered, blushing. She was always able to see right through him.

As soon as they started filming, a red envelope was handed to them. Kibum took it and opened it while Minho peeked to read from over his shoulder. The both looked up with wide eyes after they had read it. “Are you serious?” Minho asked.

“Read it out loud first,” the pd directed.

“Now that you’re married, it is time for your honeymoon. You will be travelling to London for a week to celebrate,” Kibum read quickly. “This has got to be a joke,” he insisted.

“It isn’t. Congratulations! You’ll be flying to London next week,” the pd exclaimed.

“Oh my gosh,” Kibum turned around to see Minho with a huge smile on his face. “We’re going to London!” he yelled. They hugged and jumped around a bit from excitement. The filming ended there.

It was late and they were hungry but they decided to take a quick stroll along the river. It had been a while since they had been in this area and it was beautiful during the night. “I can’t believe we are actually going to London,” Minho said, swinging their joined hands between them.

“I know, it’s such a special place for both of us. I’m so surprised they’re letting us go there,” Kibum stated.

“Despite the busyness of it all, it was a pretty good fake wedding. It’s the best one I’ve ever attended,” Minho mused.

Kibum chuckled, “It’s the only you’ve ever attended.” He continued, “It was so funny to see how our friends interacted.”

“Okay, did you notice Sunyoung and Amber shooting heart eyes at each other?” Minho asked.

Kibum sighed in relief, “Thank god you noticed it too we need to set them up together.”

They formed a secret plan to get the two to see each other again. After a pause Kibum said, “We should get a couple item.”

Minho looked at his hand, now devoid of a ring since they have to return them at the end of each filming for safe keeping, “Are wedding rings not enough?”

“I mean like something we could wear in real life, fans would love it,” Kibum explained.

Minho smiled at the thought of having matching things with Kibum, “That’d be cute. We could have the same sweater in different colors and we could maybe get a pretty bracelet or something.”

“We should by them in England!” Kibum exclaimed.

“That’ll be nice,” Minho said. They decided to go back to Kibum’s car after his stomach growled rather loudly.

On the path back Kibum suddenly stopped. Minho looked at him, “You okay?”

Kibum pulled him down into a crushing hug. “Thank you again for the song, I can’t stop thinking about it,” he mumbled, voice muffled.

Minho easily returned the hug, “I meant every word of it.”

Kibum looked up at him with an almost shy look, “Do you think maybe you could record it sometime so I could listen to whenever I wanted?”

Minho nodded, “I’ll convince Jonghyun hyung to help me.”

Kibum kissed his cheek, “You’re the best.” He began dragging Minho the rest of the way to the car complaining about how hungry he was. Minho could only chuckle and thank the stars he met Kibum.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it is so late and i'm exhausted but it's done! this turned out way longer than i expected. please excuse my mistakes i'm literally falling asleep at my computer...


	8. Chapter 8

Travelling was already annoying enough. Travelling while being filmed was ten times worse. Luckily they had to turn the cameras off to go through security. Minho was not a morning person so trying to act happy at 5am at the airport was a bit of a struggle. The only thing that cheered him up a bit was Kibum’s appearance. 

“I didn’t know you wore glasses,” Minho mumbled. 

Kibum adjusted the wire frames, “Yeah, I usually wear contacts.” It made him look so soft and cozy, making Minho feel warm with fondness.

He smiled softly, “You look cute in them.”

“Thank you,” Kibum’s cheeks reddened. Minho’s smile grew a little at the sight.

As soon as they got in line Minho put his head on Kibum’s shoulder and groaned. The other man looked over at him, “Now don’t get too excited Ming.”

Minho lifted his head and glared at the other man through sleepy eyes. Kibum turned around and took one of his hands, “I’m just kidding. Once we get to our gate you can take a nap before we board.”

Minho nodded and nudged Kibum move with the line. Kibum obliged and as soon as he turned back around he felt Minho’s forehead land back on his shoulder. He chuckled as Minho hid his face in his neck and wrapped an arm around him. Kibum rested his hand over his and intertwined their fingers. Minho hummed in contentedness. As soon as they got through the lengthy line and were seated at their gate, Minho quickly fell asleep leaning on Kibum. He grumbled when he was woken to board the plane. Once he was seated he promptly buckled up and fell back into a deep slumber before the plane was completely boarded. Mornings, Kibum learned, were not Minho’s thing.

Both flights were easy enough, as was the layover in Shanghai. They spent most of the time catching up on much needed sleep and watching movies. When they arrived in London they were better rested than anticipated which they were grateful for because filming began as soon as they stepped off the plane. They figured out how to get to the apartment they were renting for the week via train thanks to the fact that Kibum was fluent in English, a fact Minho didn’t know until the other opened his mouth at the station. His eyes got bigger as he stared in shock.

Kibum looked over and saw his face. “What?” he asked innocently.

“How did I not know you spoke English?” Minho sputtered.

Kibum shrugged, “You never asked.” 

“Any other languages I should know about?” he asked.

Kibum’s lips curled into a smile, “Japanese.”

Minho shook his head in awe, “I’ve never met anyone who’s more full of surprises.”

Kibum winked at him, “That’s why you love me.”

Minho rolled his eyes but also turned his head to hide the blush spread across his cheeks. He’d been around Kibum for so long yet something a simple as a wink still affected him. This man was incredible.

They boarded the train and took their seats. Soon enough they had made it to their stop and quickly arrived at the apartment. It was a cozy thing with a nice kitchen, breakfast nook, and small living area. 

They would share a bedroom for the week, it was easier and they were both comfortable with it. Minho’s stomach filled with butterflies thinking about it. Sleepy mornings cuddling together, not wanting to leave the warmth of the blanket or each other. He quickly shook that thought out of his head. They’d be too busy to do so, although they did have three extra days for just the two of them. Filming only lasted for four days but they decided to extend the trip to spend time together without the pressure of work and cameras.

After settling in, it was already evening and the sun was about to set. They were both exhausted, as was the crew, and it was later than anticipated. They skipped the few touristy things planned and wandered to a pub to grab some dinner. There they filmed a sleepy flirty conversation while stuffing themselves with comfort food. They walked back hand in hand feeling warm despite the nippy spring air. 

Once they arrived at their apartment they were quickly forced to change into matching pajamas. They filmed one last time for the day, showing off their apartment. Once finished, the crew packed up and left within minutes, reminding the boys of their early start the next morning. As soon as they left Kibum groaned, “Oh my gosh that took forever and these pajamas are so itchy.”

Minho flung himself onto the bed face-first. “How are we still alive right now?” he asked, voice muffled.

“I have no idea,” Kibum chuckled, walking by and ruffling his hair. “I’m going to shower first, is that okay?”

Minho nodded, not lifting his head. Once Kibum locked himself in the bathroom, Minho dragged himself off the bed to change into comfier sleeping clothes. 

Kibum came out twenty minutes later, “Alright, the bathroom’s all yours.” Minho looked up from his phone and froze once he saw Kibum. He was also wearing softer clothing, a simple loose white shirt and pajama bottoms. His face was completely bare of makeup and his hair was wet and messy. Minho could feel a small smile form on his face.

Kibum raised his eyebrow, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Sorry,” Minho flushed, “You just have a nice face.” He froze after that sentence. You have a nice face? Curse how tonguetied Kibum still made him, he just blurted out the first thought in his head. 

Luckily Kibum just laughed softly in return, “Thank you Ming. Now go shower and get ready for bed, we have a long day ahead of us.” 

Minho nodded and rushed past him to the bathroom, closing the door behind him. He leaned against the wall and covered his face with his hands. Kibum was going to be the death of him. He quickly showered and went through his nightly routine. When he exited, the other man was already in bed. Kibum was sitting up with his glasses perched on his nose and a book in his hands. He looked up at the sound of Minho. 

“Ready for bed?” Kibum asked. 

Minho nodded as he climbed in and pulled up the covers. Even under the quilt, Minho was still a little chilly. Kibum took his glasses off and put them on the side table with his book. He flicked the light off and settled in.

“I can’t believe we’re here,” Kibum said, laying on his side. 

Minho turned so he could face him, “It doesn’t feel real honestly.” 

“I’m glad we got to travel here together,” Kibum murmured, a small smile on his face.

“Me too,” Minho grinned back. He felt his eyes growing heavy, “I’m excited but also already exhausted thinking about it.”

“We should sleep, jet lag is going to be killer tomorrow,” Kibum sighed. Minho nodded in agreement and Kibum shifted to lay on his back. A silence fell over the room. 

Minho stayed on his side, admiring Kibum. All he wanted to do in that moment was cling onto the other man. “I can feel you staring at me you know,” Kibum said, startling him.

When he looked over Minho put on his best pathetic face, “I’m cold.”

“Do you expect me to do something about it?” Kibum replied, eyebrow raised. Minho pouted in response. Kibum chuckled, “I’m kidding, come here.” Minho smiled and wiggled over to lay on his chest. “Happy?” Kibum asked. 

Minho nodded, already fading, “Very.” 

“Night Ming,” Kibum whispered.

“Goodnight Kibummie,” Minho mumbled. Just before he slipped into unconsciousness, he felt Kibum press a kiss into his hair and tighten the arms wrapped around him.

-

All too soon an alarm was going off causing both men to wake up. Minho realized that Kibum was pressed against his back with a hand on his stomach. However Kibum quickly moved to silence the alarm, he frowned at the loss of warmth but still closed his eyes, desperate for more sleep. He felt someone comb through his hair, “Come on Ming, we have to get up.”

He groaned, “Just let me sleep a little while longer.” 

“Fine,” Kibum responded, “But just for a few more minutes.” Minho didn’t respond as he had already drifted off. Kibum just shook his head, smiling at the drowsy man. 

Twenty minutes later Minho was being shaken by a fully dressed Kibum, “Minho the staff is about to be here and if you’re not up and ready your coordi noonas are going to kill you.”

Minho refused to open his eyes. “Come on Ming, I know you’re awake,” Kibum said.

Minho finally opened his eyes shooting his best pathetic look at Kibum, “I don’t wanna get out of bed, please let me sleep some more.”

“Sorry, you’re out of time. You have to get up,” Kibum insisted.

Minho wiggled, “But I’m so warm. You can come back in too, you know.”

Kibum rolled his eyes, “That’s not going to work on me Choi Minho. Up!” He leaned in with the intent to flick the other man’s forehead.

“Never!” Minho exclaimed, reaching out and pulling Kibum onto the bed. Kibum giggled and he landed on top of Minho. Despite the extra weight pressing down on him he tightened his arms around Kibum, pulling him him closer, and nuzzled into his neck. Kibum stopped moving around as much. “See, this is nice,” Minho hummed. 

Kibum pulled up and put his elbows on either side of Minho’s head. “This may be nice but you still have to get up,” he said.

Minho pouted once more, “But look at how cute and cuddly I am.”

Kibum kissed the tip of his nose, “You always say you’re bad at aegyo but look at you now.” Minho stuck his tongue out in response. “And while that is true, you are very cute and cuddly, that doesn’t mean you can lay in bed all day.” 

A loud knock sounded at the door. He looked down at Minho’s now panicked expression, “Better get up now.” He got off of Minho and went to open the door while Minho scrambled to throw on clothes and brush his teeth.

It was a rush of makeup brushes and script reading until they’re rushed out the door to their first filming location.

-

Today was the day filled with all of the very touristy things. They saw the London Tower, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, and other places they had already seen and, at this point, couldn’t remember the names of. It was enjoyable but jet lag was hitting them hard.

During a break, Minho could feel himself fading, his eyelids felt like lead. He leaned over to rest his head on Kibum’s shoulder who looked down, “You okay Ming?”

“Tired,” he breathed, finally allowing his eyes to close. 

Kibum wrapped an arm around him to rub his back soothingly. “Don’t fall asleep, we’re still in the middle of filming,” he smiled at the small noise of protest Minho made.

“I’m not sleeping, I’m resting my eyes,” Minho mumbled. 

Kibum chuckled and grabbed his waist to pull him closer. It was nice that they could be so affectionate out in the open. It can be hard for them to go out in public back at home. They usually stuck to the places they feel safest so that no rumors started to circle. They only touch when they’re swinging their hands together on a quiet street. It felt freeing not having to worry about being caught in a city, they were just another face.

Minho grumbled when they were forced up again but luckily they were led into a restaurant where they could finally rest a bit and eat. No cameras this time so they both took quick power naps while waiting for their food. When it came, it was wolfed down since neither had eaten since the morning. Minho especially, but they were both more energetic afterwards so filming continued with much more ease. 

They ended the shoot at the London Eye. After stopping at all of the iconic places along the way to take photos, it was early evening by the time they arrived. They were once more whisked away by coordi noonas and came out wearing crisp tuxedos. 

Kibum had recently bought a new camera but had forgotten it at the apartment so Soojung went back and got it for him. There was still time before they boarded a pod so Kibum asked one of the staff members take pictures of them in front of the Thames River with the setting sun. 

They started out by taking aesthetically pleasing ones per Kibum’s request and the silly ones requested by Minho. It became a mini-photoshoot until they were called back. They sat down on a bench to look through them. 

“Wow we are a really attractive couple,” Kibum exclaimed. He smiled at the fact that Kibum called them a couple. Even if it wasn’t a real relationship, the thought made him flush. 

He looked at the picture and Kibum was right, they looked really good together. Their heights were almost even and the setting sun behind them cast a warm array of colors on the water behind them. As they flipped through them each picture was nicer as the last as they, mainly Minho, became comfortable in front of the camera. 

Then they got to the silly section and ended up in fits of laughter. As if they weren’t drawing enough attention to themselves with the giant crew and foreign language, they were now the loudest ones in the area. 

By the time they had to board their pod, they had tear tracks in their make up and were scolded for breaking out in giggles while their noonas fixed them. 

“You’re both hopeless,” Soojung said causing them to lose it again. Kibum got a sharp tap to the head, “I love you but the pd is going to kill all of us if we aren’t in that thing in the next minute.” That shut them both up real quick. 

-

Once on the pod, filming commenced and they were handed flutes with champagne. “Let’s toast,” Kibum said. He held up his glass, “To us and our adventures in London.” 

Minho raised his as well, “I hope we can have many more adventures together.” They beamed at each other as they clinked their glasses and took a sip. They handed their glasses back to one of the few crew members squished in the second half of the small pod and received a red letter in return. 

Kibum tore it open and they read together, “We hope you are having fun on your honeymoon. Married life is nice, isn’t it? What has been your favorite part of being married to each other?”

“I’ll start,” Minho said. They were told about this question beforehand but were allowed to answer it as they wished. 

He took Kibum’s hand, “I’ve always been the person who takes care of others. I constantly put them first so sometimes I forget to take care of myself.” Minho squeezed his hand, “Since you have come into my life, you’ve been there for me. You don’t let me forget about myself. On camera and off camera, you’re always by my side, supporting me. Honestly, marriage hasn’t changed much because we were already very close but I’m lucky to have you Kibum.”

“Well if you won’t take care of yourself, someone has to,” Kibum replied, rubbing his thumb across Minho’s hand. 

“Thank you for being my someone then,” Minho smiled while Kibum scrunched his nose at the cheesy reply. Minho chuckled, “Now tell me, why am I a great husband.” 

“Where do I even begin?” Kibum sighed dramatically.

Minho giggled, “I’m sure you can think of something.”

“You’re comfortable,” Kibum stated. 

“Comfortable? Am I a piece of clothing now?” Minho questioned, a mischievous glint in his eye.

He whined, “You know that’s not what I mean.”

Minho tried to suppress a grin, “I’m sorry, please continue.”

“As I was saying, you’re comfortable. I always feel like I have to put up a front with people. Show them Key instead of Kim Kibum because I rarely trust people enough to let them into my life. But somehow you immediately wiggled your way in and I know that no matter what you’ll accept me. Regardless of what we’re doing, just being in your presence is enough to make me happy.”

Minho smiled, “Ah, I get it now. I feel the same way, honestly.” 

“I’m glad you understand,” Kibum nodded.

“Also, it means I get to spend a lot of time with your dogs and that’s enough for me,” Minho winked.

Kibum rolled his eyes. “I should’ve guessed, you’re only in it for the dogs.”

Minho shrugged, “This isn’t news to you, I greet your dogs before I greet you.”

“That is sadly true,” Kibum couldn’t help but chuckle. 

The pod was slowly but surely making its way up so they had to take one last shot of them simply looking out of the window together holding hands. After that, filming was done for the day. However, the two of them continued standing there as the pod descended.

“It’s so beautiful,” Kibum sighed.

Minho leaned over. “Do you want to know what else is beautiful?” he whispered.

“No,” Kibum begged. “Don’t say it. Don’t do it Choi Minho”

“You,” Minho beamed.

Kibum pretended to look annoyed but couldn’t help the small smile on his face, “Shut up, you’re so cheesy.” They fell silent again, watching the sparkling city.  
“Minho,” Kibum whispered.

“Yes Kibum,” he replied.

“I really do love you,” Minho looked over and was met with Kibum’s watery eyes. 

Minho smiled sadly, “I know you do Kibum.” He tightened his hold on his waist as Kibum wrapped both arms around his middle and leaned on his shoulder.  
Minho kissed his head and mumbled into his hair, “I love you too.” 

He was silent for a few moments then whispered, “I wish...”

Kibum looked up, “You wish what?”

Minho looked at him with a sad gaze, “Nothing, it’s a conversation for another place and another time.”

Kibum nodded in understanding, putting his head back on his shoulder and tightening his hold. It wasn’t said but they both knew. Everything was amazing whenever he’s with Kibum but then he remembers they can’t be together and it’s like someone is squeezing his heart til his whole chest hurts.

They now both had tears in their eyes, a few escaping and rolling down their cheeks. That was the whole problem, they did love each other. 

Kibum probably knew Minho liked him from the moment they met. They had been skirting around their feelings for too long at this point, they were tired. Minho knew nothing was going to change. They were going to stay in that inbetween point because it was too risky to take the chance. They were both very much in the public eye and even though the show was taken better than expected, it’s different once it becomes real. People were all for it when it’s for entertainment but they had seen too many same sex couples attacked by the public. They were forced out of the industry because of it. Minho and Kibum were scared of that reality, they were scared of being shunned, scared of disappointing others, scared to be forced out of the jobs they love. It was something they were both torn about, it kept them up at night.

But for now, they will watch the city they love while holding each other closely, conveying more than words ever could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AFTER TWO MONTHS THIS IS FINALLY UPDATED!!! College has been crazy busy so I have been writing this bit by bit whenever I have time and aren't worded out. I'm constantly doing papers so sometimes writing can be a struggle. I hope you liked this even though the ending was bittersweet~ I enjoyed writing aegyo filled Minho!
> 
> There will be at least two more chapters in London so stay tuned.


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